Idaho news. (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1887-1891, 1887-10-01
ADAY WITH LINCOLN.
Pleasant "Reminiscences Of q Visit tospringasid.
The Hon. L. c. Parsons in the Cleveland
Leader.

in December, 1860 when the Ohio 7
house OF representatives, OF which l
had been chosen speaker, was to be-
gin it's session. Every day the threat
ening attitude of the South became !
more alarming, and the wisest heads
began to fear that armed collision
between the North and and the South
was inevitable. Under these circnm-
stances Senator Chase and Gov. Dem
nison thought it best / should 60 TO
Springfield, see Mr.. Lincoln, and adj
wise with him as to what, if anything
he desired said at the opening OF the
session in regard to national AFFAIRS
| Mr.. Chase and Gov. Dennlson we're
very ssirous that Ohio, by her repre-
sentatiyes, should place herself IN the
front rank OF the supporters oil the
presidents policy and have her voice |
| influential in maintaining the integrl-
| ty of the Union and the enforcement |
| of the laws.
1t was biting winters day that !
began my journey to Springfield. A
furious snow storm was raging, ana
| on my arrival at the capital OF Ill
|
buried under its white mantle. The
streets were blockaded; only here and
there a person was seen burrying
along the way, and the place appear
ed as though substantially uninhabit-
ed. Fortunately the fury ofthe storm
had kept away the usual army OF
office.seekers, and / had the good for
tune to find Mr.. Lincoln at the state
house, with only Mr. John g. Nicolay,
his private secretary, for q compan--
ion. Il. ID. Jones, the sculptor, OF
Ohio, who was engaged in making a
bust of the president. walked over
from the hotel and introduced me to
Mr.. Lincoln, who rose upon our en-
trance and received us with unassum-
ing courtesy. Telling him at once
that my visit was purely official and
that offiee-seeking formed no part oil
my mission, he grasped my hand In
! the most cordial manner. invited US
to be seated and remarked in q quiz
Zing tone that as most OF his visitors
, wanted something. and generally
wanted it pretty bad, he was glad to
i find nobody in Ohio had any such
. itching.
This was the first time / had ever
seen MIR. Lincoln, and my first i'm
!, preston was that he and Mr.. Nicko-
Law were the two homeliest men had
ever seen in one room at the same
time. Tho president at first appear
: ed to be all angles. His height was
= great, his shoulders broad and
q square, his legs, arms, body, forehead,
4 nose, chin, seemed angular. He wat
! dressed in an old-fashioned black suii
well-worn dress coat, satin vest, cut
!. very low in front, displaying a larg'
amount of shirt bosom. His face wa:
covered with stubby beard OF a few
4 weeks growth, which he explained
4 by saying that he was growing whisk
4 ers to improve the beauty of his ap
l. pearance. His hair was long, thick
a sprinkled with gray and thrown bach
u from q high, broad, retreating fore
i head. The perceptive faculties wer
I unusually prominent, the eyebrow
8 strongly marked and shaggy. Th
y skin of his face was brown, coarse
. covered with burrows and deep lines
:. mouth large, eyes speaking. brlllian
i and thoughtful; hands and feet enol
nous, and when seated III
n legs from the knees dow
of appeared out OF proportio
.. in length to the rest of his person. u
r held in his hands pair OF heavy, Ole
fashioned silver bowed spectacles. A
= together his person and manner wa
~ that of an extremely awkward, III
calmly man dressed in country fashio
ia in his Sunday clothes visiting ava
ii from his daily work and anxious
ne get back to his ordinary occupatio
I'd and working garments. His lace
nv repose was that of vigorous, orlE
nv nal, intellectual thinker, but cioude
with peculiar gravity as near
nv melancholy a it can be describe
u When he began to talk tie who
M countenance lightened, the eyes twin
~, led with fun or shone with seriou
ness. At times his laugh was so boz
So ferrous, boy-like and genuine that
was positively infectious.
,st Mr.. Jones called his attention to
NO photograph standing upon a tab
"a and he at once rose, showed it to m
- said it was taken of himself few da
ali ago and asked my opinion about
ssii 1t certainly was an atrocious alta
10 but Mr.. Lincoln seemed TO regard
he with a kind of honest pride and sat
"A. faction. | finally told him that
was not the handsomest man in t
la world, but if he was out of busint
70 he could not do better tn
.oT to sue the artist who made t
a "a picture and collect damages.
laughed and said: ION reflection t
oh. whiskers would look better if tn
s;r. were longer, but that was not I
we fault of the photographer" At Il
Inf point Mr.. Jones left, the president T.
ing him it was time lie got to work
an the ''mud head" This was the mo-
an tor the marble bust of Lincoln
of widely known to the country.
Mr.. Lincoln seated himself a
az drew up beside him two baskets. {
~, full OF unopened letters, nearly pc
M and the other for waste paper. lnN
Ia ing me to sit by him, he began
has rapidly open his mail, glancing at
- signature of each letter, laying 81
20 on the table as he desired to not
reading the brief ones, but almost
,ta. variably throwing the three or K
80, page letters promptly into the va
Mt. basket. A large number OF the lett
NJ he would hand over TO me, asking
knew the writer's and comment
on them in the drollest and keen
,,s. manner imaginable. A large part
the correspondence was from
hin, South, most OF it filled with CO
! plants or threats Of violence. Ann
,t,a. the letter was long play bill Will
80 coarse Autograph representing
u. ;, Lincoln hanging upon q gallo
vel. Some doggerel rhyme printed unde
was after this fashion: